When using a winch (or hoist) to raise a payload, a winch cable is attached to a motor-driven drum at one end and the payload at the other. The motor is driven to rotate the drum in order to gather up the winch cable on the outer circumference of the drum. As the cable is laid onto the drum, the drum radius is effectively increased, due to the extra radius provided by the build-up of layers of cable laid thereon. The increasing radius increases the torque necessary to lift the payload, due to moment effects. In a modern hoist or winch system, a clutch is provided to limit the torque applied to the drum. Unfortunately, in the event of the aforementioned effective drum radius increase, the extra torque required must be somehow accommodated by the clutch, which traditionally only has a fixed setting (i.e. a maximum torque before it slips), set by the friction between the clutch plates. As the cable is reeled-in with a fixed line load, the torque generated may be too great, causing the clutch to slip. This could lead to the drum free-wheeling and the dropping of the payload.